Sinner (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3.5) by Maggie Stiefvater

July 21, 2014

From Goodreads: A standalone companion book to the internationally bestselling Shiver Trilogy.

Sinner follows Cole St. Clair, a pivotal character from the #1 New York Times bestselling Shiver Trilogy. Everybody thinks they know Cole’s story. Stardom. Addiction. Downfall. Disappearance. But only a few people know Cole’s darkest secret — his ability to shift into a wolf. One of these people is Isabel. At one point, they may have even loved each other. But that feels like a lifetime ago. Now Cole is back. Back in the spotlight. Back in the danger zone. Back in Isabel’s life. Can this sinner be saved?

Review:

I’ve been waiting on this book for soooooo long, I didn’t think it was ever going to come out!!! Sinner is the stand alone companion book to Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver trilogy (also known as The Wolves of Mercy Falls series). You really should read the trilogy first, though. This trilogy is one of my favorite series, and Maggie Stiefvater is one of my favorite authors (her Raven Boys series is another fave), so I was extremely excited for Sinner! I’m going to try to rein in my fangirling for this review, and also try to be vague so as not to spoil anything for fans of this series!

Sinner picks up after the events in Forever, the last book in the series. However, unlike the other books in the series, Grace Brisbane and Sam Roth are not the focus of Sinner. Instead, Sinner is about Cole St. Clair and Isabel Culpeper, the secondary characters from the trilogy that I thought constantly stole the show. Cole – the boy we hated to love and Isabel – the girl we loved to hate.

“I am a werewolf in L.A.”

After the events in Forever, her parents separated, and so Isabel moved from Minnesota to Los Angeles with her mom. They are living with Isabel’s divorced aunt and cousin in what Isabel refers to as the “House of Dismay and Ruin.” Still grieving the death of her brother and now the death of her parent’s marriage, Isabel is trying to move on and build a new life by pursuing a career in medicine. She’s harsh, bitter, and blunt to hide her vulnerability. The last thing she needs or expects is Cole St. Clair in her life again.

“I came back for you, Isabel.”

Cole St. Clair shows up in Los Angeles, the city that played a part of his downfall (prior to becoming a wolf), to pursue/restart his music career. But really, he’s there for Isabel. He’s on a path of redemption, and he wants Isabel in his life. He needs her. They have a complicated love – they will either bring each other up or tear each other down.

“There was always room for more monsters in L.A.”

This installment focuses more on romance than the paranormal aspect featured in the trilogy. While Cole is still a wolf, the wolf issue isn’t as prominent as the romance. I still enjoyed and loved it, though. It’s a clever, lovely, snarky, funny, and sweet story. I just can not explain how much I adored this book!! Love Cole and Isabel so much!! Fans of the series shouldn’t be disappointed, I think this book is better than the hype!! It’s awesome, and I highly recommend it!!

Comments

Such a lovely enthusiatic review! I though DNFed Shiver so will probably never read this book. I do like the author’s writing but found Shiver slow and boring unfortunately. Although this cover is quite beautiful. ^^ Glad you liked this book so much!

Thanks for the praise! Sorry you didn’t finish Shiver. It does start out slow, but then it really picks up & turns into a great book — just an FYI if you ever decide to try it again. I think it is one of those series with mixed reviews — people either love it or hate it. The book covers are beautiful!! Tricia recently posted…Sinner (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3.5) by Maggie Stiefvater

I’m a fan of Maggie. Love her writing so much!!! But sadly I haven’t finished the trilogy yet But ahsghdfdghsghdf!!! Just reading the lines you quoted and I’m swooning again. I really have to finish the trilogy first then I’ll read this.

Thank you for the review, Tricia. I’m glad you liked it and I feel that I will too. <3

OMG, you have GOT to finish this series!!! And you’re lucky since it’s now complete, you don’t have to wait forever for the next book! I think & hope you’ll love it as much as I do! Thanks for commenting!

I am so glad you loved this, Tricia! I’ve only read the first book in the Wolves of Mercy Falls series and I refuse to read the rest in the trilogy because I don’t want to have to suffer through the open ending of Forever seeing that Shiver had a PERFECT ending IMO. .-.

I am such a buzzkill But seriously, I have heard good things about Sinner so I am glad you enjoyed it and that it didn’t let you down.

I really loved it, but for the most part, I love Maggie Stiefvater’s books & her writing style. I definitely wanted more at the end of Forever, but now with Sinner, I feel like I got it. Thanks for the love!

I’m glad to see that you continue to enjoy the series, love! I’ve read other reviews for this book and many of them weren’t exactly as positive as yours – many liked it yes, but I think some were turned off that the story swayed a little from the original plotline. But it seems the romance here was well-worth it, as it got you on a squealing frenzy. Hooray!Faye @ The Social Potato recently posted…Random Things in Motion #5: Would You Sacrifice a Loved One for the Greater Good?

I purposely didn’t read any reviews before I read it or before I reviewed — I didn’t want any spoilers before reading & I didn’t want any reviews to burst my bubble after, LOL. I think it’s one of those series that have a lot of mixed reviews. Like for those that really liked the paranormal aspect will probably be disappointed since it does focus more on the romance and personal struggles of Cole and Isabel. I really enjoy those characters! Thanks for stopping by!! Happy reading!!

I cannot wait to read this book, Tricia. I loved the Shiver trilogy, and honestly, by the end, I think I was more attached to Cole and Isabel than the other two (whose names I can’t even remember . . . *scrolls back up* . . . Grace and Sam, that’s right). Regardless, great review Jessica @ Rabid Reads recently posted…Early Review: Poison Promise by Jennifer Estep

I know, I adored Grace & Sam, but Cole & Isabel stole the spotlight several times! I just really enjoyed their chemistry together — whether they were kissing, bantering, or flat out arguing, they were great characters together. Can’t wait for you to read this & hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Thanks for commenting!

I’ve only read The Raven Boys and I’m holding off reading that series until it’s complete. Now, I’m torn…should I start this one too? How many books are in this series?? GAH!! I don’t care! I’m adding it to my TBR!

Okay, so I just found out last week that The Raven Boys will now have 4 books!! I thought the 3rd one (coming out this fall) was the last! I’ve read the first 2, and I’d love to read them one right after the other, but I think the suspense would kill me!! Book 2 ended with a cliffhanger, so I know I’ll be diving in to Book 3 when it comes out. And then unfortunately, probably have to wait a year for the conclusion!!! You definitely should read this series though! There’s only 4 books — Shiver, Linger, Forever, & now Sinner — so it should be complete!! Please let me know if you read it, especially if you really like it, LOL!!

LOL!!! Love your review!! I’ve only read Maggie Stiefvater’s Raven Boys series, but I’m completely sold by the rich characters and textured worlds that she weaves into the pages. Really need to get to reading the Shiver series! There’s been so much love recently for Sinner ahh *excited*Alicia recently posted…I Hate To Admit This But Something HAS Changed

Tricia…don’t hate, but… *gulps* … I read The Raven Boys and it was kind of meh for me. Thanks for sharing, and, as always, BRILLIANT review! <3Zoe @ The Infinite To-Read Shelf recently posted…Falling Into Place

Don’t worry, no hating here! We all like different things, & both these series get a lot of mixed reviews. Definitely let me know if you try Raven Boys again or Wolves of Mercy Falls, especially if you enjoy them!! I think both 1st books (of each series) start off slow but then it really picks up. Very detailed, though not quick reads! Thanks for the praise & for commenting!! Tricia recently posted…Sinner (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #3.5) by Maggie Stiefvater

I can’t wait to read this one!!! It’s been sitting on my Kindle for a week or so now, but I’m behind in my review books, so Sinner is gonna have to wait a bit longer. I’m SO happy to see that you gave it 5 stars though; I read a few other less than stellar reviews and was worried.Carmel @ Rabid Reads recently posted…Paranormal New Releases: July 22nd

You’ve GOT to read it soon! I really loved it, but I have now seen mixed reviews for it. I think more were expecting some of the same aspects (like paranormal/wolf) that the series has & I think that’s why there’s disappointment. This companion novel is in the same world as the series, but it is different. It’s life after the events in Forever & Cole’s & Isabel’s new struggles. I really hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!! Thanks for commenting!!